


I Cradled You In My Arms

by grayblebayble (orphan_account)



Series: Little! Paladins [1]
Category: Voltron: Legendary Defender
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Domestic Fluff, Gen, Jewish Character, Non-Sexual Age Play, broganes
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-12-29
Updated: 2018-02-14
Packaged: 2019-02-23 15:30:10
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 7
Words: 7,951
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13193055
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/orphan_account/pseuds/grayblebayble
Summary: Keith was never the best at expressing his emotions; but when he slips into his headspace, all of his pent up anxieties seem to go away. Now with Shiro gone, none of his friends know about his little space. He had no one to go to when he slipped. Or at least, he thought he didn’t.





	1. Chapter 1

Keith had been training all day; that was evident by his damp hair and pungent aroma. Ever since Shiro had disappeared, his routine was the same. Wake up, eat, train, eat, train, then sleep. He wouldn’t talk to anyone, unless it was a snarky remark or something related to Voltron.

Lance was the first to talk to him after Shiro’s leave of absence. 

“Hey Keith?”

“What?” He spat.

Lance hesitated. “The rest of us are gonna have a movie night, do you wanna join us?”

“I’ll pass.” Keith trudged past him, looking pale with dark bags under his eyes.

“You sure? We’re watching an old Altean classic; or at least, that’s what Coran said.”

“I’m going to bed. It’s been a long day.” The door shut behind him.

“Okay, then.”

Lance entered the foyer and saw Hunk bent over, connecting the TV to the multiple generators that Pidge built.

“So?” He looked up from his work.

“He’s not coming.”

“Seriously?” said Pidge. “How long has it been, a week? And he’s still not talking to us?”

“I'm sure he's fine.” Lance flopped onto the couch. “You got it set up yet, Hunk?”

“Almost,” He grunted as he stood. “Okay Pidge. Light it up!”

The sound of clicking and whirring erupted from the generator. The the screen began flashing images of the movie.

“It’s starting!”

Pidge and Hunk joined Lance on the couch with several bowls of snacks. 

“Man,” Hunk took a handful of food “I haven’t watched a movie since our last winter break from the Garrison.”

“Oh yeah,” Pidge recalled. “It was ‘ _ Big Hero 6 _ ’ right?”

“Yeah, that one’s a classic.”

“Speaking of classics; that Fall Out Boy song though?”

The three continued to rant and rave about everything they missed from Earth. The foods, their families, all of their old adventures together; it brought back so many memories. After watching the sequel and the prequel, Lance started to feel his stamina decrease.

“I’m gonna call it a night.” He yawned. “See you guys at breakfast.” He waved back at the two.

Lance padded down the hallway already half asleep. As he passed by Keith’s room, he heard something. Lance stood still in his tracks, listening for the sound again.

It was crying.

It was Keith crying.

Without thinking, Lance opened the door. “Hey man, I–” He stopped.

The floor was littered with children’s toys. Keith sat in the corner of a play mat, snuggling with a stuffed hippo with his thumb in his mouth. He looked up and saw Lance.

“B-Bruder?” He hiccuped.

“What the–?”

“Bruder.” Keith sniffed.

The hippo in his arms dropped to the floor as tears began streaming down his face. Lance stood at the door for a moment, just watching. He had never seen Keith like this before; physically or emotionally.

“Bruder!” He howled.

Lance felt a pang in his chest. He couldn’t leave him like this. He closed the door and knelt down next to Keith.

“I need you to use your words. Can you do that for me?”

Keith shook his head. He put his thumb in his mouth and began chewing on it.

It took Lance less than a second to connect the dots.

“Hey, it’s okay.” He stroked Keith’s cheek. Keith leaned into his touch, as if he were starving for it. “I know you miss Shiro, buddy. I know.” Lance went to pick him up. Keith’s face suddenly turned red with color.

“No!” He shouted. “No! No!”

“Okay,” Lance removed his arms from Keith’s waist. “Don’t wanna be picked up right now. Gotcha.” Silent sobs continued to rack through his body. Keith stuck his fist in his mouth and gagged.

“Hey, don’t do that!” Lance pulled Keith’s hand away from him. “You’re gonna make yourself sick.”

He pursed his lips. “Paci.” Keith whined.

“Uh– ” Lance quickly scanned the room. He rummaged through the closet and found a black bag hidden on the top shelf. Lance had to stand on his tiptoes to reach it. He flipped open the bag and held up the object.

“Is this what you want?” Keith grabbed at the air. Lance stepped in closer and pressed the pacifier to Keith’s lips, which he eagerly took. “Let’s see what else you’ve got in here.”

He dug his hand into the bag and found several things; clothes, toys, a bottle, even diapers. Out of curiosity, he pulled a large blanket out of the bag. Keith clambered across the floor and snatched the fuzzy blanket from Lance’s hands. He rubbed it against his face. Lance cracked a smile.

“You’re such a cutie.” He lilted. Keith hid his face in the blanket. Lance laughed.

He reached out to touch Keith again, then drew back.

“Keith, can you tell me how old you are?” Keith stared at him blankly, then held up two fingers. “You’re two? Wow! Such a big boy!” He praised. Keith giggled behind his pacifier.

Lance pulled out his communicator to check the time: it was well past three in the morning.

“Aren’t you tired, buddy?” Lance yawned. “Because I am. And you’ve been working out all day. You’re not even a little bit sleepy?” Keith shook his head. “Okay, well I’m gonna go to bed. I’ll–”

“No!” His lips trembled.

Lance paused. “You don’t wanna be alone, do you?” Keith nodded. “Do you want me to stay with you?” 

“Please?” Keith raised his hands above his head. Lance scooped him up off the floor and held him upright. Almost immediately, Keith clung to him. Lance started to pace around the room, gently rocking the boy. He could feel Keith’s stiff muscles melt. Lance began to rub circles on his back. Keith let out a pleased hum.

“You must be all tuckered out, huh?” He chuckled. Keith nuzzled his face into Lance’s chest. “You’re just a big sweetheart, aren’t you?” Lance gushed.

After a few more minutes of pacing, Keith was asleep.

Lance sat down on the edge of the bed, still cradling Keith. He positioned himself so he could hold on to him and still be comfortable. Lance wrapped his arms around him, then allowed himself to rest as well.


	2. Chapter 2

“Good morning.” Lance stretched. 

“How was the movie?” Coran asked.

“Eh, it had a sloppy ending.” Hunk shrugged.

“Not true!” Coran piped in. “The sequel tied everything up in a nice little bow.”

“But the prequel was terrible.” Pidge slurped her drink.

“That series is a classic!”

“Yes, but it’s still awfully boring.” Allura laughed. Everyone but Coran laughed with her.

“Speaking of awfully boring, where’s Keith? I mean, I get it that he’s avoiding us; but he always comes to breakfast and broods.”

“He was kinda out of it last night and–”

“You were with Keith last night?” Pidge shouted. “What happened? Did he say anything?”

“No, not really. He was just–” He paused to think. He couldn’t tell them what actually happened. Keith would be mortified if they found out. “I think he’s just depressed.”

Allura gasped. “Is he going to be okay?”

“He’ll be fine. Just a little down in the dumps.”

“No wonder he’s been acting so weird.” Hunk exclaimed.

“Yeah,” Lance agreed. “He just misses Shiro, that’s all.”

“We should all bring him breakfast.” Pidge stood.

“No!” Lance shouted. The entire table silently watched him. “I’ll give it to him.” He took a carton of juice and some fruit slices. “He’s probably still asleep, so I should bring it to him.”

“That doesn’t–”

“And we had that bonding moment so he likes me better!” Lance yelled as he ran down the hallway.

Lance could hear Keith from the next hall down. He rushed into the room to find Keith sitting up in bed, bawling. Keith wiped his face, smearing snot on himself. Lance took a napkin and had him blow his nose. 

“I’m sorry. I didn’t think you’d wake up so soon. But hey,” Lance let go and showed him the food. “I got you breakfast.”

Keith sniffed. “Baba?”

“Yeah, and I have some fruit slices too.” 

Lance dug through Keith’s bag and pulled out a bottle. He poured in the juice and offered it to him. Keith crawled into his lap and settled between Lance’s elbow and chest. He pressed the nipple to Keith’s mouth and relaxed when he began to eat. The sound of Keith suckling his bottle was calming in its own special way. Lance smiled.

“You’re a hungry little hippo, aren’t you?” 

Lance removed the bottle from his lips. Keith whined as he did so.

“Yucky.” Keith mumbled. He sputtered a cough. Lance handed him a fruit slice. “No.” He threw it down on the bed.

“You’re not getting sick, are you?” Keith stuck his fingers in his mouth. Lance replaced them with a pacifier, then felt his forehead. “Quiznack, you’re burning up.” Keith moaned. “I have to tell Allura. Or Coran.”

“No!” Fat tears started to roll down his cheek. “No!”

“Why no?”

“No! No, no, no!”

Lance weighed his options. “Okay, I won’t tell. But if you’re not better soon then I have to tell them. They won’t be mad at you.”

Keith sobbed, coughing even harder than before. Lance brushed back his long messy hair with his fingers. He shushed him. Keith leaned into Lance, holding tight to his shirt.

“You should get some rest. It’ll make you feel better.” Keith clung tighter to Lance.

“N-No.” He hiccuped.

“Hey, I promise to stay this time. I won’t leave.” Lance pulled out his communication device and started to message Allura. “Gonna have to skip training today. Keith isn’t feeling well and I promised him I’d stay here.” He sent the message. A ping went off and he read her reply. “Okay, she said it’s fine, and that she hopes you feel better. And to text her if we need anything.”

Keith rubbed his eyes and yawned. “No sleepy.”

“I’ll be the judge of that.” 

Lance shifted Keith to hold him. Keith curled into his lap and nursed on his pacifier. He wrapped his arms around Keith and rubbed his back. His hand stopped as he felt Keith’s padded bottom, then continued to soothe him. Lance smiled when he finally heard Keith’s silent snores.

Lance stood and balanced Keith on his hip. He was so much skinnier than the other paladins, even Lance himself; which made it easier to carry him. 

Lance stealthily made his way into the kitchen and grabbed a pack of protein shakes and some other soft foods. Then, he went down to the infirmary and borrowed some medication that he had seen Allura use when the others had been sick. He had made good time, so he quickly went to his room and grabbed an extra set of clothes. Lance returned to Keith’s room and sat the bag of things on the floor, then put Keith on the bed. He rolled over, puckering his face. Lance smiled. How the heck was he so cute? He finished sorting through his bag and opened Keith’s to further examine its content.

There were toys fit for an infant, like rattles and stuffed animals. Then there were clothes, and at the bottom of the bag; Lance found diapers. A few cloth ones, and some disposables. 

His heart broke just a little; because right now, Keith was just a baby. He was frightened and the world must seem so big and scary to him and  _ quiznack _ Lance was glad that he found him before something terrible happened.

After everything he had been through, that all of them had been through; meeting aliens, fighting the Galra, watching people sacrifice themselves for the greater good, it was hard for Lance to find this weird. Of course, he hadn’t expected this; but right now Lance needed to take care of his teammate. Whether one of them suffered or one of them thrived, it affected everyone on the team. Why had he and Shiro kept this a secret? Did they really not trust them?

Keith jolted awake and screamed. Lance rushed to his side and began to rub his back.

“Hey, it’s okay.” Lance hushed him. “I’m here, I’m right here.” Keith let out broken sobs. His face was flushed from crying and being sick. Keith coughed, trying to catch his breath.

Lance began singing softly to him in Spanish. It was an old lullaby his mother used to sing when he got scared as a kid. He placed Keith into his lap and bounced him on his knee. Keith stopped crying and made a curious sound.

“Do you like that? Do you like bouncing?” He cooed, then lightly bounced him again. Keith giggled.

“Again! Again!” He chirped.

Lance started to bounce him, singing ‘ _ William Tell Overture Finale _ ’ wordlessly. Keith squealed with laughter.

“Again! Again Daddy!” Lance’s jaw went slack.

Did he just call him Daddy?

Keith seemed to sense his tension. His face scrunched into a pout.

“Hey. Hey, it’s okay. Let’s just keep bouncing,” Lance bounced him again. “Yay! Yay for bouncing!” His attempts to distract him seemed to fail. Keith let out a loud shriek, then started to squirm in Lance’s grip.

Keith managed to break free from Lance and scrambled into the closet. He balled his hand into a fist and began yanking on his hair.

“Bad! Bad!”

Lance kept his distance for a moment. He wasn’t sure whether he should try comforting him again or just wait it out. But Keith was hurting himself, and he could do worse if Lance didn’t intervene.

“Keith?” He approached him. “I–” Lance paused. “I’m not mad at you. Can you come out from there?” Keith shook his head. “Please? For Daddy?” Lance held out his hand.

Keith glanced up at him with watery eyes. “No bad?”

“No, you’re not bad. I know that you're just a baby right now.” Lance untangled Keith’s fist from his hair. “And babies need to be taken care of. So, if you want me to be your Daddy, I’m more than happy to do that.”

Keith flung himself at Lance. He barely braced himself, then held him tightly.

“Daddy.” Keith sobbed. “Daddy.”

Lance rubbed circles on Keith’s back, shushing him. “It’s okay Keith. Daddy’s here. Daddy’s right here.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> [William Tell Overture Finale](https://youtu.be/YIbYCOiETx0/)


	3. Chapter 3

Lance sat holding Keith for what seemed like hours. He had significantly calmed down, but still sobbed as Lance attempted to coax him out of the closet.

“Do you wanna go snuggle on the bed? It’ll be so much comfier than being here the floor.” Keith held out his arms.

“Cuddles.” He blubbered.

Lance lifted him out of the closet, shushing him as he settled them under some blankets. He rocked Keith back and forth and softly sang to him. Keith suckled on his pacifier and pawed at Lance’s shirt.

“What is it, baby?”

Keith coughed, spitting out his pacifier. The cough was thick and wet. Lance shifted him and started to pat his back. He gagged, then vomited on Lance. Lance cringed at the feeling of it dripping down his shirt, nearly gagging himself.

“Sorry! Sorry!”

“It’s not your fault. I know you didn’t mean to.” Lance took the dirty blanket and wiped off Keith’s mouth. He discarded it and replaced it with Keith’s security blanket. Surprisingly, Keith hadn’t got any stomach content on himself; it was Lance who had taken the brunt of it. He got up and started towards the bathroom.

“Daddy!” Keith wailed.

“Daddy’s just gonna take a shower, okay? I’ll be right back.” He turned and tripped over a stuffed hippo. An idea came to him. Lance took the toy and pressed it against Keith. “I have a very important job for you. Can you watch this for me?”

“Leeba.” He squeezed the stuffed animal.

“That’s such a pretty name. Did you pick it yourself?” Keith nodded. “Cool! Now I need you to watch Leeba while I’m gone. It’s very important.”

“Okay Daddy.”

Lance smiled at Keith, before he shut the bathroom door.

“I’m gonna die.” He groaned.

While his patience had yet to run out, all he wanted to do was to go into one of the cryo-pods and put himself in a coma. It wasn’t that he hated doing this; he was actually eager to take care of Keith. He was just so exhausted and wanted nothing more than to rest.

Lance stripped out of his soiled clothing and stepped into the shower. The hot water rained down on him, easing the tension in his body. After washing himself thoroughly, Lance didn’t want to get out. He ended up spending another ten minutes under the shower head, just allowing himself to be alone.

Eventually, he did get out and get dressed. He would have to do the laundry later. Lance re-entered the bed room and smiled. Keith had fallen asleep while cuddling his toy. It was tempting to join him, but he was still sick and Lance knew that he needed medicine.

He gently felt his forehead; Keith was still running a fever.

Lance reached for his bag and pulled out the medication. It was a vial of thickgreen liquid, with a small squeeze dropper. He gently shook Keith awake.

“No.” Keith pouted. “Sleepy.”

“Keith, I need to give you your medicine. I promise it’ll make you feel better, and then you can have lunch.”

Keith was suddenly wide awake. “Baba?”

“Yeah. And maybe some of that fruit too.” Lance stood, still holding on to Keith’s hand. He took the bottle and filled it with one of the protein shakes; then pulled out several small fruit slices. Lance unscrewed the vial and filled the dropper.

“I don’t think this will taste the best. But I have your bottle ready to wash it down. Now open up.”

He allowed Lance to take out his pacifier and parted his lips. Lance dripped the medicine into Keith’s mouth. He swallowed it and puckered his lips. Lance quickly took the bottle and started to feed him. Keith drank it vigorously.

Everything had happened so quickly. One minute they were rivals, and the next they were– well, Lance didn’t know what they were. But he knew that Keith would go back to normal eventually; then they would have to talk about what happened. But for now, he just had to make sure that Keith was well taken care of.

Keith released the empty bottle. “Yucky.” He whined.

“Yeah, that didn’t taste good, did it?”

Keith shook his head and squirmed.

“Not that? What’s wrong?” Keith fidgeted in Lance’s lap. “Can you use your words for me?”

“Yucky!” He grumbled, growing more frustrated.

“Wha–? Oh.” Lance felt Keith’s bottom and noticed that his diaper was soaked. “It’s okay, Keith.” Lance stroked his cheek. “Will you let Daddy change you?”

He blushed and hid his face in Lance’s chest.

“Please?” Keith mumbled.

Lance stroked his hair back. “Of course, that’s what daddies are for.”

Lance grabbed his bag with one hand and held Keith in his other. He pulled out a cloth diaper and some other supplies like baby wipes and rash cream. Keith clung to him like a koala.

“Keith, I need to put you down.”

“No!” He yelled.   
“Baby boy, I can’t hold you and change your diaper at the same time.” Keith whimpered.

“Paci?”

“Right here,” Lance gave it to Keith. “Now, can you lie down for Daddy?”

Keith huffed, then reluctantly allowed Lance to lower him onto the changing pad. He still held his arms out, pleading to be comforted.

“Sorry.” He sniffled.

“It’s okay, buddy. It was an just an accident.”

Keith turned away and hiccuped. Lance rubbed his belly, cooing words of encouragement as he untaped the diaper.

“You’ve had a rough day. Huh, baby boy? But Daddy is so proud of you for being such a trooper. Maybe at the next planet we can get you some more toys. Would you like that?”

Keith hesitantly nodded his head. Lance hummed as he began to clean off Keith’s lower half. The baby squirmed and cried through the whole process. He only started to calm down when Lance finally finished putting him into a clean diaper.

“Okay,” Lance sat him up. “All done. Doesn’t that feel much better?”

Keith trembled. “Daddy.” 

Lance balanced Keith on his hip and began to clean up all of the toys and supplies that littered the floor. He threw the dirty diaper and used wipes into a plastic bag and tied it shut. He would throw that away later.

“Do you wanna play now?”

“Sleepy.” Keith rubbed his eyes.

“Yeah, why don’t we cuddle for a bit?” Lance layed Keith down on the bed, then wrapped his arms around him from behind. 

Lance was asleep before his head hit the pillow.


	4. Chapter 4

It was still dark when Keith woke up. He spat out his pacifier and pulled back the covers. Keith stopped, someone was holding him.

“ _ Bruder, ikh darfn tsu bakumen aroyf _ _. _ ” Keith groaned.

A dam opened up inside of him, flooding his mind with memories.

“Lance?” He shouted.

Lance sat up out of bed. He looked at Keith. “Hey.” Lance cupped his cheek. “Hey, it’s okay–”

“Don’t touch me!” Keith swatted his hand away. “What are you–? Oh, quiznak.” He slapped his palm to his face. “Oh no, you saw everything didn’t you?”

“Keith, it’s fine. Do you want to go get dressed and we can talk?”

Keith blushed furiously. “Okay,” He untangled himself from the sheets. “Just give me a sec.”

When Keith finally emerged from the bathroom, he was dressed in his usual attire.

“I’m sorry.” He spoke with all of his normal demeanor “I didn’t mean for you to see me like that.”

“It’s fine. I’m glad I did.”

“Why?” Keith sat on the bed.

“Because what would have happened if there were no one around? You could’ve gotten hurt, and you’re still sick.”

“I’m starting to feel better.” He sniffed. “Thanks for the medicine.”

“You’re welcome.”

They sat in silence for a moment.

“So, what was that exactly?”

Keith held his face in his hand. “It’s this stupid thing I do when I get stressed. I sorta, reverts to a babyish mindset. I didn’t mean to slip for that long; I just couldn’t help it.” He leaned back on the bed. “Usually Shiro will look after me when I get like that, but now–” He trailed off. “I’m so sorry you had to see that.”

“Why?”

‘What do you mean ‘why’? I was literally a giant baby for twelve hours.”   
“You don’t have to apologize.” Lance smiled. “It wasn’t so bad. Does it help you?”

“I mean, yeah. It helps with stress. But I can’t do that everytime something goes wrong.”

“Why not?”

“Because I’m a Paladin of Voltron!”

“So what?” Lance shrugged “Have you ever reverted during a battle?”

“No, I’ve never regressed while in battle. Red keeps me grounded; so even if I wanted to, I probably couldn’t while piloting her.”

“Keith, if it helps you then why wouldn’t you want to do it?”

“I do! It’s just–” He fumbled over his words. “It’s weird, and really embarrassing too.”

“There’s nothing to be embarrassed about.” Lance chortled. “If I’m being honest, you were adorable.”

Keith quirked his eyebrow. “Really?”

“Yeah, you were so cute. You called me daddy and–”

“Don’t remind me.” He groaned.

“You can call me daddy if you want to.” Lance touched his shoulder. “I’d be more than willing to take care of you when you regress.”

Keith grunted. “You don’t tell anyone about this.”

“I won’t. But I have a couple of questions.”

“Go ahead.”

“When you’re regressed, is there anything you like doing? Games or something?”

“Usually Shiro and I will play with my toys. He’ll tell me stories, or we’ll cuddle and watch a movie.” Keith smiled fondly. “I can be really affectionate sometimes. Like, I love being held and cuddle.”

“Do you ever misbehave?”

“I don’t usually get into trouble. Shiro says I’m a pretty good kid.” He beamed with pride. “Sometimes I’ll have a meltdown, but I get over it pretty quickly.”

“How old are you usually?”

“It depends.” He shrugged. “The oldest I’ll ever get is maybe three, but most of the time I’m around one or two.”

“Aww, that’s so sweet.”

Keith blushed. “I guess.”

“Is there anything else I should know?”

“A lot, actually.”

“Well, we’ve still got a couple of hours before everyone’s done training. So tell me everything.”

“Everything?” Lance nodded. “Where should I start?”

“Let’s start with some guidelines. How should I treat you? And is there anything you don’t want me to do?”

Keith pondered for a moment. “Don’t take away my comfort items as punishment. Especially Leeba or my pacifier.”

“Okay, noted.”

“If I do misbehave, usually Shiro just gives me a time out depending on how regressed I am.” He sniffed. “Most of the time though, I have a meltdown if I’m scared, overwhelmed, or I just want one of my basic needs.”

“And what are those?”

“Food, attention, sleep, and hygiene.” Keith counted on his fingers. “Or as Shiro dubbed it, ‘FASH’.”

Lance chuckled. “How long have you guys been doing this?”

Keith’s face fell. “For awhile. Shiro stepped in when we started living together. And that was six years ago.”

“Are you conscious when you regress?”

“If you mean aware of what’s happening, then yes I’m conscious. But I’m more vulnerable. I can’t help what I do; I just do it. And I can’t control it. It’s a headspace; and whenever it’s triggered, I slip. I can try repressing it, but that’ll just mean the next time I slip I’ll be in that space for longer.”

“What triggers it?”

Keith paused. “Let’s just say there’s a reason I regress so young.”

“Were you– Were you abused as a kid?” Keith didn’t answer. “Sorry, I didn’t mean–”

“No, you’re fine.” He sighed. “If I’m gonna–” Keith hesitated. “If I’m gonna let you be my Dodo, then you need to know this stuff.”

“Dodo? Like the bird?”

Keith smiled. “Dodo basically means ‘Dada’ in Yiddish. Or I could call you ‘Fater’ or just daddy.”

“You can call me whatever you want.”

“Then I’m gonna call you Dodo and Daddy, because my dad was ‘Fater’. And Shiro is my ‘Bruder’. I could teach you basic Yiddish if you want.”

“Sure,” Lance nodded. “Is there a certain point I’m allowed to tell the others?”

“Absolutely not.” He retorted. “No one else can find out about this.”

Lance didn’t argue. “Just let me know if you change your mind.”

The dinner bell rang through the Castle. Lance got up and waited at the door.

“You coming or what?”

Keith wavered, then followed Lance out of his room and through the halls.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> “Bruder, ikh darfn tsu bakumen aroyf.”  
> "Brother, I need to get up."


	5. Chapter 5

Keith shook Lance by his shoulder.

“Daddy! Daddy!” He chanted.

Lance rolled over in bed. “Mhm, sleep.”

Keith shrank back. “Sorry.”

He sat up when he heard Keith’s apology. “Baby boy, what are you doing awake?”

“Baba.”

Lance rubbed his eyes. “You want breakfast now?”

“Please?” He begged with puppy dog eyes. Lance checked his communication device; it was still early enough that no one would be awake.

“Alright,” Lance grunted. “Do you wanna come with Daddy to the kitchen?” Keith nodded, lifting his arms. Lance scooped him up and slipped Keith’s pacifier in his pocket.

It had been over three months since they had started this routine. Every third week of four, Lance and Keith would take some time to let Keith regress for the entire week. This only worked because every third week of the month was when they would relocate the Castle, and they were traveling at such a powerful speed that training was nearly impossible to do without the technical system malfunctioning. The routine had worked so far, and didn’t show signs of failing any time soon.

Lance made silly noises at Keith as they entered the kitchen. He giggled and blew spit bubbles with his lips. Lance flung opened the fridge and took out a protein shake. Over the past three months, he had mastered the art of making a bottle with only one hand.

“Baba!” Keith babbled.

“I’m almost finished, then you can have your baba.”

Lance sealed the bottle and started to feed Keith his breakfast. He nursed greedily, cuddling Leeba in his arms.

“You must’ve been so hungry, weren’t you buddy?” Keith made a pleased sound.

He had only finished a quarter of his bottle when Lance heard footsteps approaching the kitchen. Keith tilted his head back toward the sound.

“Look, all I’m saying is–” Pidge halted at the entryway of the kitchen. Hunk nearly crashed into her, which caused Allura and Coran to pile up behind them.

There was a stalemate in the kitchen; each party waiting for the other to react.

“What–?”

Allura didn’t get the chance to finish. Keith had already began shrieking. It was a piercing sound that made Lance’s head hurt and his heart break. Keith held onto him as if his life were in danger.

Lance tried his best to soothe him, but knew that there was no chance of calming him down with everyone gawking at them.

“Everybody out. We’ll meet you in the lounge.”

“Lance–”

“Now!” He barked. The four jumped back and stumbled out of the kitchen.

Lance started to bounce a wailing Keith, placing him on his hip. He tried to get a word from him, or any form of communication. But Keith was so deeply regressed that Lance wasn’t sure he could talk if he wanted to. Tears flooded from Keith’s eyes and left stains on Lance’s shirt.

“You’re okay, Keith. Everything’s gonna be fine.” Lance continued to murmur deliberate words of comfort to his baby. “Do you want to explain everything to them?” Keith screamed, sobbing even harder. Lance shushed him and kept bouncing until he wasn’t crying so loud that he couldn’t hear him. “Do you want Daddy to do it for you?” Keith hiccuped, then nodded. “Okay, Daddy will talk to them. Daddy’s gonna make it all better.” Lance smiled. “Can you finish your breakfast for me?”

He pressed the nipple to Keith’s lips. He turned his head, refusing to eat. “Okay, we’ll try again later.” Lance tucked the bottle under his armpit.

Before entering the lounge, Lance placed the pacifier between Keith’s lips; it seemed to steady his breathing. He sat down on one of the couches and set Leeba and the bottle down next to him, all while shielding Keith from seeing the others.

The rest of the team sat across from them, waiting for an explanation.

“What just happened?” Allura was the first to speak.

Lance took a deep breath. “A couple of months ago, right when Shiro disappeared; I found out that sometimes Keith goes into this mental headspace where he thinks and acts younger. So whenever he’d slip into this headspace, Shiro was the one who looked after him. But with Shiro gone, I’ve kinda taken on the role myself.”

“Why did he just start freaking out?” Hunk wondered.

“Don’t worry, it’s not anything you did; he just got spooked. Keith isn’t used to showing this side of himself to anyone. It took a long time for him to let me in completely. And right now, he’s only a baby.”

Keith grizzled, threatening to start another bout of crying.

“Will he be alright?” Allura frowned.

“Yeah, he’ll be okay. Besides, I think it’s time he started getting used to you guys anyway.” Lance shifted him to partially face his team mates.

“Look Keith.” Lance lilted. “Can you say hi to everybody?”

Keith blinked, then buried his face in the crook of Lance’s neck.

“Dodo.” He whimpered through his pacifier.

Everyone cooed at him.

“Are you like his father?” Coran asked. “How does that work?”

“More like a father figure, really. I just make sure he’s safe and taken care of.” Lance slowly rubbed his back.

“How old is he?” Pidge whispered, hardly containing her smile.

“Right now? Maybe a little over a year old.”

Another chorus of adoring murmurs came from the group.

Keith started to frantically squirm. “Leeba! Leeba!”

Lance went to grab the toy when he noticed it wasn’t there. He panicked before he saw Hunk reach down by his feet and pick it up. He walked over and held it in front of Keith.

“Is this what you wanted, little dude?” Hunk smiled.

Keith stared at him inquisitively. Hunk’s smile only grew as he extended his hand to give him the hippo. Keith snatched it and snuggled it with an iron grip.

“Kuzin.” He mumbled.

“What does that mean?” Hunk chuckled.

“It’s Yiddish. I think it means cousin?”

“Kuzin.” Keith repeated, as if to affirm Lance’s suspicion.

“He’s so adorable.” Allura gushed.

“Yeah.” Lance agreed. “But he can be a challenge to look after sometimes. I can hardly leave him alone for a minute without him crying.”

“Lance, I think I can speak for all of us when I say that we would be fine helping you look after him.”

“That’s not my decision to make. It’s his.”

“We could talk to him about it when he’s not regressed.” Pidge suggested. “How long will he be like that for?”

“Well, usually he’ll be regressed all week. But he’s never had a meltdown that bad before, so it’s hard to say.” Keith whined noisily. “What is it, baby?”

“Baba!” He cried.

“You wanna finish breakfast?” Lance stretched out his hand and grabbed the bottle. Keith was more than eager to begin eating again. Everyone watched, mesmerized by each interaction shared between the two.

“Hi sweet boy. Who’s my sweet boy? Are you my sweet boy? Are you Daddy’s sweet baby boy?” Lance cooed. Keith’s eyes began to droop.

“You must be so sleepy after all that crying, huh?” Lance removed the empty bottle. “You can go back to sleep if you want to.” He swayed back and forth. Keith smothered his face against Lance and yawned.

The moment he fell asleep, everyone started chattering over each other.

“That is the most adorable thing I have ever seen.”

“When he wakes up do you think he’d let me hold him?”

“Me too?”

“I wanna hold him first!”

“Does he have cute little nicknames for all of us?”

“One at a time!” Lance whispered sharply. “Let’s start with the basics.”


	6. Chapter 6

“Okay,” Lance settled Keith onto the couch. “If he wakes up then just try to distract him until I come back. He ate earlier this morning but he might still be hungry. And if he cries–”

“Lance, calm down man.” Hunk smiled. “You’re taking a shower; not traveling to another galaxy.”

He smirked. “You’re right, okay. I’ll be back in an hour.”

Hunk settled on the couch next to the baby and began reading a magazine. The lounge had been set up to cater Keith. His play mat was spread out on the floor, along with his collection of toys and supplies.

After ten minutes, Keith began to stir.

“Daddy.” He sat up. “Baba.”

“Your daddy will be right back, kiddo. Do you want me to get your baba?”

Keith looked at him. For a moment, Hunk thought he might start crying.

Instead, Keith nodded his head. “Baba.”

“Coming right up.” Hunk got up from the couch and started walking towards the kitchen. He was met with a loud complaint from Keith.

Hunk turned around. “What’s wrong?”

Keith crawled to Hunk’s feet and clung to his leg.

“Kuzin!”

“C’mon Keith. It’ll take me five seconds, then I’ll be back and you can have your baba.” Keith shook his head and squeezed tighter to him. Hunk sighed, then lifted his foot and started to walk. Keith squealed with laughter.

“Again!”

“Or, this works too.” He smiled.

Hunk had dragged Keith to the kitchen as he held on to his calf. His laugh was the purest thing Hunk had ever heard, and extremely infectious. He sat the baby down on the counter, then took his time flavoring Keith’s protein drink with different syrups and spices.

“Alright,” He handed Keith his bottle. “Eat up.”

Keith looked at the bottle, then back at Hunk. He opened his mouth and attempted to shove the nipple in. Not even a second after he began to eat, Keith was wearing part of his meal.

“Here, let me help you.” Hunk held him and supported his back while feeding him. Keith moaned with delight.

“Maybe he’s in the kitchen?” Hunk heard Allura ask.

“Hunk? You in there?” Pidge called from down the hall.

“What’s up?” Hunk swayed side to side.

“I wanted to ask–”

Allura and Pidge simultaneously cooed.

“Oh my gosh, he is adorable.” Pidge sighed.

“I know, right? Did you hear that little man?” Hunk’s voice rose an octave when he talked to Keith.

“May I see him?” Allura opened her arms. Hunk nodded and passed him over. Keith stared at her curiously. “Hi there!”

Keith’s hands found their way to Allura’s face. “Mume.” She giggled.

“Do you wanna join us? I was just about to head back to the longue.”

“Absolutely!”

Pidge and Allura followed behind Hunk. “What’s he been like so far?”

“Lance was right when he said that he’s really sweet.” Hunk rubbed his back. “I never thought I’d see Keith smile as much as I have.”

Keith gazed at Pidge, suckling on his pacifier.

“Hey, little man.” She tickled his chin. Keith giggled loudly. “Oh, so you’re ticklish? I’ll have to remember that.”

Keith grinned. “Shvesterkind.” He pointed at her.

She quirked an eyebrow. “What does it mean?”

Hunk shrugged. “Beats me.”

“We could ask Lance when he comes back.”

“Daddy?” Keith babbled.

“Yeah, why don’t we see if he’s in the lounge?”

Hunk carried Keith into the lounge with Pidge still trailing behind. Lance was asleep, sprawled across the couch.

“Daddy!” Keith held out his arms. Lance’s head bobbed before he snapped awake.

“Wha–!” He instinctively reached for his bayard, despite its absence. He relaxed when he saw Hunk, Pidge, and Keith. “Oh, hey guys” Lance yawned.

Lance stood and took Keith into his arms. Keith nuzzled into his neck.

“Daddy.” He murmured.

“Hey, buddy. How was your time with Hunk?”

“He basically slept the whole time, and he just ate.”

“Thanks.” Lance nodded.

“Mume.” He pointed at Allura.

“Yeah? Did you have fun with Mume Allura?”

“Uh, that doesn’t mean ‘mommy’ does it?”

“No, it means aunt.”

“Shvesterkind.” Keith pointed at Pidge. Lance started laughing.

“What does that mean? He just started calling me that.”

“It means little cousin.”

Hunk snorted. Pidge crossed her arms over her chest.

“You must find that hilarious.” She playfully scowled.

Keith beamed at her.

“I wish I could stay, but I can’t leave the ship on auto pilot for too long.” Allura waved at Keith. “I’ll try and stop by when I can.”

“Yeah, and I should get back to working. Hunk, I need your help with a couple of things too.”

“Aw, but I wanted to spend more time with Keith.”

Lance chuckled. “It’s okay, just go help Pidge with whatever. Besides, I think Keith needs some time to recharge from all of that social interaction.” Lance gently patted his back.

“Alright,” Hunk followed Pidge out of the lounge. “Just let us know if you need anything.”

“I will.” He nodded. Lance smiled and began to pace around the room with Keith. His arms were wrapped around Lance’s neck. He sat Keith on the floor and started cleaning up the toys on the floor. Keith squeaked.

“What’s the matter buddy?”

Keith whimpered and shook his head. He opened his mouth as if to say something, but only grunted. He clenched his teeth and tried again, straining to speak. His whining soon turned into loud, frustrated screams.

This had happened before. He would get so upset over something that he became non-verbal. And when he did get to that point, he only got more worked up.

“Hey, it’s okay.” Lance soothed him. He took Keith into his arms and bounced him. “It’s okay, baby boy. Just relax. Daddy will take care of you, okay?”

Lance sat down and cradled Keith close to him. He held his arms crossed over his chest and was hugging himself. Lance went to sit him on his knee but Keith scrunched up his face and wailed. He stood and grabbed Keith’s diaper bag. Keith continued to blubber.

“I know, I know.” Lance shushed him.

He carried the baby through the halls of the Castle and tried to distract him by pointing at the stars and planets they passed. Keith’s crying had soon turned into soft whimpers and huffs of discomfort. Lance entered Keith’s room and started setting up to change his diaper. He gently laid Keith on the mat and started to undress him. Rubbing his belly seemed to soothe him just enough that he wouldn’t cry himself sick.

“Oh, poor baby.” Lance sighed.

His entire lower half was red and irritated; a classic sign of diaper rash. Lance quickly cleaned him off and lathered a generous amount of cream on the afflicted areas. Keith squirmed with watery eyes.

“Okay,” Lance lifted him into his lap. “All done. We’re all done.” He rubbed Keith’s back. Keith blushed furiously. “Do you wanna go play now?” Keith shook his head and curled into Lance. “Well, we could watch a movie and cuddle in here. How about that?” Keith nodded.

Lance cocooned himself and Keith under a mountain of blankets as they watched an American movie about talking animals. He wasn’t really paying attention; Lance was more focused on Keith. He stroked his hair. Lance was happy that Keith had finally become comfortable around his teammates.

If only Shiro were here.


	7. Chapter 7

The Castle alarms blared in Lance’s ears. Keith hid under the blankets and screeched. Lance pulled him onto his lap and ran circles across his back. Something bad must have happened. They could be under attack, or there could be some natural disaster approaching. Lance knew he couldn’t leave Keith, but he couldn’t get him out of his headspace either; that might make things worse.

Deciding that the only option was to bring Keith with him, Lance grabbed his headphones and placed them over Keith’s ears. He wrapped a blanket around him and started running toward the control room.

“What’s going on?”

“We’ve received a distress beacon.” Coran was pushing several buttons and switches. “It seems to be coming from a Galra escape pod.”

“Can we contact them?” Pidge sat in her respective chair.

“Yes, but the signal may not be fully functional.” Allura wavered.

“And it might be a trap.” Hunk noted.

“Do we have any other options?” Lance draped the blanket over Keith’s head and pressed him against his chest.

“Other than letting them aboard or shooting them down, no.”

“I guess we’re contacting them.”

“I just sent the call. We should get a response in–”

A hazy figure appeared on the screen. Radio feedback rang through the audio receptors.

“Hello? Hello, can you hear me?”

He groaned. “Princess Allura?”

“Shiro? Is that you?”

“What happened?” Shiro mumbled.

“Hunk, go out there and bring him in. He may need medical attention.”

Hunk nodded and jogged to his Lion.

“Shiro, we’re sending Hunk to come and get you. Are you hurt?”

“I don’t think so? Just–” He paused. “I feel weird.”

“Maybe he’s dehydrated? Or suffering from oxygen deprivation?” Pidge suggested.

“We’ll know when he gets inside.”

Keith whined in Lance’s arms. He hushed him. “Everything’s okay, buddy. Shiro’s gonna be just fine.”

“Lance? Do you have Keith?”

“Yeah, he’s right here. He’s been regressed all week and–”

“What?” Shiro yelled. “He’s never regressed for more than a few days! How old is he?”

Lance peeled back the blanket to reveal Keith’s face. He removed the headphones and fixed his hair. Keith squinted at the bright light. “Keith, baby? Can you tell Daddy how old you are right now?” Keith whined and rubbed his eyes. “Uh, I’m guess younger than one. He’s not talking.”

“Oh, Keith.”

“Don’t worry Shiro. Lance has kept him well cared for.”

“We all have.” He added. Lance slowly started swaying. Keith grizzled and rested his head on Lance’s shoulder. “I should put Keith back to bed. It’s still pretty early and I don’t want him to be cranky when Shiro gets out of the medical bay.”

Lance went back to the bedroom and continued to rock Keith to sleep. He squirmed and grumbled. Lance wiped the corners of Keith’s eyes with his thumb.

“I know you want to see Shiro, but you need a nap first.”

Keith pouted, huffing beneath his pacifier. His teary eyes were drooping, but he fought to stay awake. Eventually, he wore himself out and dozed off. Lance sat on the bed and curled up under the blankets. 

Keith drifted in and out of consciousness for hours; only waking up to cry and have Lance rock him back to sleep. Lance was in the middle of this when the door opened.

Shiro padded into the bedroom and sat next to them. Keith mewled as Lance shifted him into Shiro’s arms, still holding his hand.

“Hey, kiddo.” Shiro smiled.

Keith let go of Lance’s hand and flung his arms around Shiro’s neck. He bawled into his neck. Shiro hushed him and brushed back his hair.

“Oh, I know baby. I missed you too.”

Lance watched them and his heart couldn’t help but bleed a little. He knew that Keith missed Shiro, but only at that moment did he finally see how strong of a bond they shared. 

“Alright,” Shiro stood, placing Keith on his hip. “That’s enough crying for today, isn’t it? Why don’t we–?”

He flipped Keith upside down and blew zerberts on his belly Keith squealed with laughter. Shiro swung Keith back and forth, kissing his stomach playfully. He fell back onto the bed and laughed.

“All better?” Keith giggled in response. He crawled on top of Shiro and placed a wet kiss on his cheek.

Shiro turned to Lance. “Thank you so much for taking care of him.”

Lance smiled. “You don’t have to thank me. I enjoy it.”

He chuckled. “It looks like Keith did too.”

“Daddy.” Keith tugged on Lance’s arm. “Daddy!”

“What is it, Keith?”

“Yucky.”

“I got it.” Shiro hoisted Keith onto his hip and gently laid him on the floor. He made a silly face, making the boy laugh.

Keith babbled to himself as Shiro changed his diaper. He was quick and made it look like he had been doing it his whole life.

“So, how long has this been a thing?” Lance asked.

“What do you mean?”

“I mean– this.” He motioned. “Keith regressing and you knowing about it.”

“Well,” Shiro let Keith climb onto his lap. “I’m not entirely sure how long he’s been regressing. I only found out when he was fourteen. And that wasn’t intentional.” Keith reached out to grab the toy that Shiro was currently entertaining him with. “Ever since, I’ve been the one to look after him. No one else has ever known about it, and he intended on keeping it that way.” Shiro grinned at Keith, mimicking his babbling. “I’m glad he opened up with you.”

“Well, I don’t think he wanted to.”

“But he still did. And I’m proud of you, kiddo.” Keith made a questioning noise. “Yeah, I’m talking about you.” Shiro tickled his tummy. Keith fell back onto the floor squealing as Shrio attacked him with tickles. He pursed his lips and pretended to bite Keith’s neck,

“No!” He giggled. “Daddy!”

“Daddy to the rescue!” Lance swooped down on Keith and lifted him into the air. He kissed Keith’s cheek, making a smooching sound for dramatic effect.

Things were as they should be.

 


End file.
